Syria is encouraging Sunni Arab insurgent groups and former Iraqi Baathists with ties to the leaders of Saddam Hussein’s government to organize here, diplomats and Syrian political analysts say. By building strong ties to those groups, they say, Syria hopes to gain influence in Iraq before what it sees as the inevitable waning of the American presence there.

At the same time that they are aligned with Iran (Shia) and have officially re-instated ties with the Iraqi Gov’t (Shia) and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

Further proof that the US can not continue to act as if it is the only player in the country. As if Iraq existed (it doesn’t) or if it did, as a separate sealed off country–except of course for Syrians to let in suicide bombers and Iranians to send weapons.